Born in Edgefield County, South Carolina, John O'Neall (1813-1897) immigrated to Texas in 1853 with four members of his family, four slaves, six horses, and two wagons. After a 63-day journey, he arrived in Gonzales County, Texas, where he lived until his death.
Letters and a bound journal compose the John O'Neall Papers, 1853-1899, documenting the life of John O'Neall and his family. The volume contains a handwritten diary chronicling O'Neall's 1853 journey from South Carolina to Gonzales County, Texas, and describing his expenses, each day's travel, and his impressions of the land. The journal also includes recipes for medicine, cattle inventories (1959-1960), a will, instructions for accounting, and an attendee list for the Methodist Episcopal Church South at Five Mile of the Leesburg Circuit in the San Antonio District, West Texas Conference. Additionally, letters to O'Neall and his family in Texas from friends and South Carolina family concern familial and local activities and news.
This collection is open for research use.
John O'Neall Papers, 1853-1899, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.
Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s